Wood, leather, metal hardware and perhaps some animal bone or fur accoutrements. The makings of a fine Viking shield.

And if that shield came from the Black Forest Forge? Add ballpoint pens to the supply list. Black Forest Forge is the studio, and fledgling 'brand ', of Dariusz Zawiązalec, whose output often incorporates all-of-the-above materials, and shields are one form the Polish artist's ballpoint pen works appear. ''There is no 'forging' of metal to make swords or weapons, either as a job or as art,'' the artist clarifies. "I just thought 'Black Forest Forge' was a cool, dark name. My art is connected with pagan mythology, history and fantasy, so thats why the name sounds good to me.'' Nonetheless, for those planning a siege, taking one of these shields into battle just might ensure a swift victory: the finely inked mythological scenes decorating them provide a perfect distraction for overthrowing adversaries.

The shields, the art adorning them, and Zawiązalec's choice of studio name evoke impressions of an artist living a hermetic existence deep in a remote, thickly forested valley. Promotional photography staged in such environs to show off his shields